Pollinators

Pollinators play a vital role in growing many of the world’s key crops – one third of global food production is improved with the help of pollinators, most of which is performed by bees.

There are many known pollinators among them are animals but insects are dominant that include the bees, wasps, butterflies, beetles, weevils, ants, bats, birds, rodents, and reptiles.  Kenya among the countries in the region has 400 to 500 species that are critical for crops.

In agriculture, it is estimated that 90 percent of the leading crop types worldwide are visited by bees and 30 percent by flies. The number of species that exist in the world, are estimated to be about 20,000 species of bees, and sub-Saharan Africa has 3,000 species recorded in recent times (Kremen et al., 2007; Winfree et al., 2007;Gikungu, 2006)

There is a growing concern on the future of food security. This has made agricultural researchers look into honey bee health more critically, focus on more research and the need for documentation and replication of best practices on pollinator conservation Stewardship Guidelines. 

There are many factors that affect pollinator health, such as pests and diseases, management practices, weather, the environment, agricultural practices, and the availability and quality of food sources.

Here are some global Facts and Quotes related to the role of pollinators in agriculture, factors affecting pollinator health and the need to protect pollinators.

Also read about Pesticides and Pollinators: https://www.croplifeafrica.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Newsletter_April_2020.pdf